What is your feeling? Will Peanut Tillman be back with the Bears? -- @RichVolkJr from Twitter

I think this is a real toss-up at we move close to the opening of free agency. The Bears have publicly stated they would like to have Tillman back and he’s said he would like to be back but obviously there isn’t a dollar amount they can agree on at this point because barring something unexpected, he will reach the open market on Tuesday afternoon. Tillman has talked about this since the day after the season ended and he hasn’t changed his tune once. Given his age -- he just turned 33 -- and the fact that he missed significant time last season with injuries, I’d suspect he’s looking at a one-year contract offer. Tillman was outstanding in 2011 and 2012 when he reached the Pro Bowl. Before the torn triceps sidelined him, he was dealing with a knee issue that prevented him from practicing much and kept him out of the Giants game.

What’s interesting is cornerback is probably the deepest position in free agency this year. Teams looking for help are going to have some players to pick through. None of them are perfect but there are a collection of cornerbacks headed to the open market. It’s a position that didn’t get paid well in free agency a year ago and that is probably one of the reasons Tim Jennings took the deal he did from the Bears when he did at the start of January. Jennings and his agents knew the market was rough on veteran cornerbacks last March. Those two factors – a surplus of available cornerbacks and a slow market – could keep Tillman’s price down. We’ll see how it shakes out for him and how much the Bears want to step up to keep him.

How can Phil Emery be so heartless? First Brian Urlacher, then Devin Hester, soon to be followed by Charles Tillman and next year Lance Briggs. These are all genuine Bears legends that all want or wanted to play their entire career for the Bears only. Doesn't that mean anything anymore? It certainly should for the most storied franchise in pro football. For what these guys have done I believe they deserve special treatment and considerations from the organization and their losses can be viewed as nothing but making the team worse. – Marcus B., Fairview Heights, Ill.

If it’s loyalty you are looking for, I’m afraid you are searching in the wrong place. It’s a wonderful ideal when you think about the NFL but nothing more than that. Reality dictates players cannot play forever and in the NFL these days (and really in all professional sports), it is rare when a player gets to go out on precisely his terms. It just doesn’t happen very often and for good reason. Terrell Owens thinks he should still be playing. Jeff George probably believes he should still be on a roster. Business is business and I would suggest you accept that and look back with fondness on the careers ex-Bears had in the team’s uniform rather than fixate on the ins and outs of departures. One general rule is it is better to get rid of a player one year too soon than one year too late. The Bears were old on defense last season and that was one of the contributing factors in their struggles. Maybe they didn’t get rid of enough old players. I don’t know what more to suggest other than maybe you can pop in some DVD’s from the 2006 season.

In the last mailbag you said that if Henry Melton is re-signed, drafting Aaron Donald would not make sense. With impact players and depth at defensive tackle critical to restoring the defense, why does not adding a young impact defensive tackle who could rotate with Melton not make sense? – Michael O., Colorado

If the Bears re-sign Melton, they should be set at the three technique position with a guy that should be capable of handling up to 65 percent of the snaps or so provided his knee checks out. When Melton had his best season in 2012, he was on the field for 58 percent of the defensive snaps. Adding Donald to the mix via the draft would be redundant, in my opinion, and the Bears wouldn’t be able to get maximum use out of him. I think the resource of the No. 14 pick would be better used at another position. Now, if Melton isn’t re-signed and the Bears don’t find a noteworthy replacement at that position, Donald would be a very solid addition in the first round. I like his game a lot.